There is panettone in my fridge, an Italian presceppe in my living room and a Befana on my tree. Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Deck the Presepio In major cities, you will find towering Christmas trees taking over the main square and smaller trees are increasingly decorating Italian homes.
Clap Along to the Zampognari Think bagpipes are a purely Scottish phenomenon? Natalie Natalie is a food and travel writer who has been living in Rome full time since The Rinascente Department Store in Rome. Jim Bono says: There is panettone in my fridge, an Italian presceppe in my living room and a Befana on my tree. December 18, at am Reply. Typical Nativity Scene. Crib in the Messina Cathedral. Typical Zampognari. Babbo Natale, the Italian Santa Claus. Christmas Stockings for everyone.
Typical Italian Panettone. Merry Christmas. Enjoy this page? Please pay it forward. Here's how Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it? Click on the HTML link code below. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.
Recent Articles. It is also televised in St. If you have been on a guided Vatican tour , then you will know big the square is; it is even more magical at Christmas time, with its huge tree and nativity scene, and people celebrating the holidays as one. While some Italians are attending midnight mass on Christmas Eve, others are whizzing down the slopes on Christmas Day.
In northern Italy people ski down the mountains at midnight, carrying torches as a festive celebration! In various Italian cities, and especially in Rome - the Eternal city - you are likely to find men playing bagpipes in the squares across town.
This was based on the story of the shepherds who visited Jesus on the night of his birth and played the bagpipes for him. The pipers wear short breeches with leather leggings, a sheepskin vest with a woolly cloak and also a peaked cap. You might be able to catch the pipers on a Rome walking tour! It is not only Santa who brings Christmas gifts. Right across Italy, on January 6 - marking the end of the holiday season - there is a visit from la Befana.
Her housework, according to the tale, stopped her from venturing out with the three kings on the night they went off in search of baby Jesus. She went off herself later on, with a bag full of gifts for the newborn king.
At Christmas, the Italians are especially big on sweet food. Francis of Assisi had made Nativity scenes very popular! Having Nativity scenes in your own home became popular in the 16th century and it's still popular today before that only churches and monasteries had scenes.
Nativity scenes are traditionally put out on the 8th December. Sometimes the Nativity scene is displayed in the shape of pyramid which can be meters tall!
It's made of several tiers of shelves and is decorated with colored paper, gold covered pinecones and small candles. The shelves above the manger scene might also contain fruit, candy and presents. One special thing about Neapolitan Nativity scenes, is that they always have extra 'every day' people and objects such as houses, waterfalls, food, animals and even figures of famous people and politicians! Naples is also the home to the largest Nativity scene in the world, which has over objects on it!
In the street you can buy wonderful hand made Nativity scene decorations and figures - and of course whole scenes!
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